In the beginning

The Students’ Association’s first Wyckham House actually was a house, purchased in 1965 when the Mount Royal College campus was still downtown. Legend has it that before the Students’ Association had its own spaces the Executives would meet around the kitchen table of business instructor Dr. Robert Wyckham. When they finally acquired their own building, the students named it “Wyckham House” in honour of the instructor who had inspired them.

Mount Royal College moved to its current location on the Lincoln Park Campus in 1972, and the Students’ Association moved with them. Originally, we offered services from various locations throughout the College, but eventually came to realize that we could only truly achieve our mission of offering high quality services and support if we were independent of the College. The existing Wyckham House, which opened in 1987, was designed to meet this goal.

When the existing Wyckham House was built, however, it was designed to accommodate a student population of 5000. Since that time, MRC’s student population has more than doubled. In 2000, students recognized that Wyckham House would need to be expanded, and they began saving money for a new building.

Last year, in conjunction with S2 Architecture and lead architect Linus Murphy, we developed plans for an expansion of Wyckham House, as well as interior renovations to the existing building. Linus and his team were able to design a building that reflected the students of Mount Royal College: vibrant, forward-thinking, innovative and determined.